Madison smiled up at Shadow. She was delighted that he stopped by to check on her. She was also impressed he noticed her exploring the camp. He always seemed so occupied with whatever business demanded his attention.

"Hi Shadow, yeah." She replied.  "I just wanted to look around and watch people doing their thing. I also checked out my new fighter. I did the full inspection and everything. Maybe I'm going a little stir crazy with all this down time. But sincerely, thank you for asking."

 The LC  nodded to  Maddy with a smile,its good for pilots  to get around,  Red Dec  is the best place?..but we're on our own alot.... Troopers  have it hard thier won way?..but at elast they have folks around  them, in and out of battles. We've had our share of Pilots lose it.. and rather then become part of  The Hermes, then become  a blight of sorts?

  we get to a carrier  station, or friendly planet, you'll have a bit more  fun on your down time. even  being on the Hermes , is better then being stuck in the compound, well..except you ladies seem to take  advantage of  the  resources here.

 He  Gave Lizzy a Pat on the shoulder,I'm Sure Candy, Lizzy and others   filled you in..but make sure you have   your crash kit  stowed.. Tunnel runs  will keep you alive as  far as being able to run..but you need  a weapon and some gear to make a longer  trip....

 Eckles  looked at him.....like the  Green Moon?

 well, I gonna take the Admiral  and larry food.. they won't leave that look put post, until the shuttle lifet off.., then i have to check my fighter.. see ya   all later...

Justin continued to eat  Ten minutes after Kray left Justin finished eating returned the crock and utensils to the used table then headed to his biller from some downtime.

 Lizzy nodded at the LC when he walked by and talked. " LC yes she will fit in great, yes I enjoyed getting some sun, I think the guys did too." Lizzy giggled and added after Shadow left, " He can be a bit harsh, but he only does it to make sure you come back after every jumpoff. I owe the LC my life not just in the air, if he let my Father take me off the Hermes, I would probably be dead by now because I would never join the Empire." Lizzy looked like she might lose it but she got a hold of herself and cleaned up her area.

Reaching his billet Justin checked for any incoming messages then hitting Sack.

Reading what transpired to be the #2 Admirals diary, it would quickly become apparent that he and some of the others had had serious misgivings concerning the agreement they’d made with the Empire especially when the experiments to make the crew “Fully join the Empire” started going wrong, with more of the subjects turning into horrific hunchback mutants or hideous spider things than Creshian’s ”It doesn’t sound like these guys were as committed to the Empire as we thought they were” Izzy quietly said to no one in particular as she carefully turned a page, with her wondering how many on board had fully understood what they were signing up to when they boarded the ship.

Tulliun lifted off   with TI-JO  with  a pair of  bodies and  sampled of poison,,he headed to the   Hermes.

...............

 The rest of the   troops   gathered  and  began to  board the   Shuttles, cramming people in, though  there was more  room since a few people   were missing.

 Once in the Air , Roy  Gave  Hemsly the OK  to light up  the  Bridge  dec of the vessels.. a walking series of  explosions   started under the    ground to the  west...making its  way  towards the  parts of the wreck that could be seen,

 some  of the  walls  blew outwards  , sending gouts of   dirt and metal, others  were Muffled  as  the  top of the Mountain collapsed  into the   Bridge  Dec.. after  10 minutes or so, the   explosions  stopped,  the dirst  had started an avalanche, of  sorts...the top of the Mountain, now, showed very few signs of smoke tendrils, as the dust and latent smoke hovered over the top like a  crown.

 by contrast, thicker smoke was  now  coming-out  of the  Engine  area  the  team had  entered before,  and some smoke was   coming out of the 'beachhead' the drop ship troopers   made...already they were pulling back  and sealing any holes that might   help creatures  get out.

  Shoey was in The Diamond, Robbins oin the Club... Lyri, Roy and Zob were in the Spade.

 Vasser  snarled at them...I will have no people left!..they will die   from the creatures, mor  smoke , or fire!

<<< shadow from mess hall

 Walking back to the    Look out   post, Shadow  carried a tray for  The Admiral and  another Bucket  for Larry.

   The   Larg sat down slurping out of the  Bucket,   Shadow  handed   The Admiral a the tray , Hack looked ... worried  about me starving?

 ..who is the  2nd   Person , Captain Si will wired out on, if you  aren't  eating... you're lucky she didn't get the board to bring you up..

 He  gave  Shadow an exasperated look,'fleet Admiral'..has to make sure he  eats  all of his supper..

  ..yeah? well? we all answer to someone?.. remember  when she  slapped  me for flying through the largran hanger dec the 2ndtime.

 Hack  chuckled .  They saw one  shuttle   take off   for the Hermes.. they other  three   back off... troops  at the LZ  were retreating back... the Mountain top began to light up  with  explosions.  and jets of  debris
 shot  out..  there  were  signs  of heavy  Welding and Melding Go on at the  LZ , at the base of the   Ship.

 Shadow watched...so?  now  what?

 I sent Beth a COM to  send  the COMs feed out  to  show  what happened  with the Chinese..  This  is the ESN Planet now..so   we'll have  to remove the infestations.

After a good shower Nikki cleaned up and dressed, in case she was needed in the air again.  She felt human again.  Not needed anywhere at the moment she checked her weapons and gear.  She made minor repairs as needed.  Then moved to the comms station to see if she could get a link to Hermes and see how Haley was doing.

Henry saw to the largs, getting them settled around the compound with ample supplies of food and water. Then he made his way to the Admiral's hut, Mila trotting at his heels, to check on Larry.

In reply to wreck (msg # 111):

Zob took a seat and that is when Vassar opened her mouth, "Do yourself a favor and stop talking before you get into more trouble it might help you live longer"

  Roy Called Cora   and  Izzy over...we have sent the poisons  and   bodies up to  The Hermes .. the Books  are comign down with us... They will be  sent  to the  HQ  building... once we land, get cleaned up  and  get food, then we can have a sit  down with the Admirla, Henry and  whomever  Else the  Admiral thinks  we need in on this.

 Vassar  was indignant to say the  least.. Lyri   nodded   at Zob's  words...Your people are dead. And if they aren't, they soon will be.  This is a Planet that we need to colonize...that means wiping out  any  Empire  assests ..sadly..that will mean  we have to  kill any of your people that may...somehow, still be alive.

 Will Grins.but it does mean, we  get to take out Oil Lords.

Shoey chuckled,always looking at the bright side..

...............

 The  3  Hermes  assault  shuttles  Land.  people   disembark, heading for the barracks to shower and  change, then get food.. vassar  heads to the   HQ  to do the same... Robbins  calls maria  over  to help   take the Books  to the HQ...

 Robbins  waves  Vassar  away,.. You can go to  you billet and get a shower..but you stay away from these books until the Admiral  says other wise.


 Larry  greeted  the  other  LArgs, the mess   folks   ran out   trimmings  and leavings, as well as  Buckets and buckets of water. for them, As Henry sorted them out.

 The Admiral told  Roy, Lyri, Zob, Shoey, Robbins  and  Shadow  to meet with  him, Cora and Izzy, when   Izzy had   cleaned up and  washed up..

 Lizzy got up smiled at Madison and said," See you around I hear the shuttles coming back I zzy is with them I hope." Lizzy took care of her tray and trash and then headed out to see the shuttles land and too look for Izzy.

Zob huffed in amusement the exchange as he stepped off the shuttle and made his way towards the HQ.

As he arrived at HQ he greeted the troopers standing watch and made his way inside where the admiral was waiting.

  The Admiral, Zob, Roy, Lyri, Shoey and the  LC  reported to the HQ... Henry was asked to  Came,  and Vassar  was  permitted to sit in, but  keep quiet. Cora   and Will escorted   Izzy to the  HQ.,

 The admiral offered them tea  or Coffee.. the food  would  have to be  at the Mess Hall.After  everone was settled in, The Admiral turned to Cora.So? what do you have  for us Corp  Aspen?

 Cora shakes her head, pointing to Izzy...Stir  Fry...i..um..mean Ensign  Sakura  did  all the reading, i just sorta  stood guard  and looked for things.

 Hack nodded a  slight   smile at Cora's introduction.Well Ensign?  what did you glean from the   books

Billie made it a point to shower and take care of those basic needs before going to check on her skeeter to make sure everything was in working order. When that was done, she took out a book from her pocket and found a spot to sit, a little ways from others to read.

Henry came in and accepted some coffee. He sat down to listen with Mila curled on his feet.

Still clutching the Admiral's diary, Izzy had withdrawn from the ship along with the rest of the troopers by boarding one of the cramped shuttles for the uncomfortable ride down to the surface where she had hoped for a little down time with Lizzy before the stage stage of the operation, whatever they were, got underway. Sadly however such hopes were quickly dashed as she was first informed of and then escorted to a meeting with the Admiral and several other notables from the Hermes.

And so still dressed in her armour Izzy would find herself standing before the Admiral politely accepting a cup of black coffee before considering how best to answer his question "hmm that depends...if you're after actionable intel on either the Chinese or Creshian's...um...nothing...However I have learned that the Chinese were not as loyal to the Empire as we were lead to believe and that they were mislead into volunteering for experiments that turned them into the creatures we encountered within the ship, and it is my belief that if we were to leak copies of this diary into China then we may have a propaganda victory on our hands, especially when people in the Chinese government learn that their people were mislead, used as guinea pigs, turned into monsters and then abandoned by their so called imperial allies" she replied, with her experience in journalism telling her that although the Chinese government was unlikely to suddenly swap sides they just might think twice before offering any further assistance to the Empire "...There are also several other books containing what appear to be data on the experiments they were running but...um...I'm not a scientist so I can't say for sure what they contain or how useful it is" she then added before waiting to see if either the Admiral or any of the others had any questions for her.

 Lizzy saw Izzy escorted to the command tent with others, she must have found something of interest and Lizzy was happy Izzy was being a part of the War verses the Empire. Lizzy relaxed and waited for Izzy to be done in the command tent.

  Admiral Hack  nodded slowly as  he listened. Well.. Can  you read that  in Chinese?  If  so  , we''ll  get Beth to have you Broadcast  what the Journal says  By reading it...along with the Admiral's  Name....

 Roy  was  stern, as to what   they should  do.

 Lyri shrugged,They   made thier  Bed... Let those  at home know..maybe there will be a revelotion .. get them out of  everyone's  hair while  they torch each other

  Pilots  were sorting themselves out not, most heading to the  Bunks.

 Flores  sighed  as she  watched the shuttles landing , and the  people getting out.They're gonna need to wind  down.. I'm going to sleep..

   The   troopers   disembarked. Some looked  really tired.. Vassar   followed Cora  , Will and  Izzy  to the HQ..Doc  henry  ad  Mila  made their way  there  as well.

 most of the   troopers  went  to  the  two barracks  to wash up , before eating..The top of the  Mountain glowed  again... only tiny tendrils  of smoke cane out of the  top now....    The drop ship troopers   were   have   short fire fights  as the  sound of   weapons  bursts  were  quick, with little  or no return fire.

After finishing her meal, Madison followed the other pilots back to the barracks. After a quick run to the bathroom to freshen up, she went to her bed, stripped and went to sleep. As far as unexpected days off went, it turned out to be pretty good.

"I would be interested in the scientific data, but I shall need assistance to translate it," said Henry quietly.

  Hack  nodded slowly...  Doc Henry... Sakura..  Robbins  take  up  1/3 of the   troopers and Half the largs.... Doc? you and Sakura start working on the books  and translations, so we can get that feed out

 The rest   will stay here until we  all Go up, Incase the drop ship  troopers need us...

  LC? Sent up one flight of  fighters to escort the   Club up to the hermes...

  Already Done, Admiral.

 Vassar speaks up.I wish to go up as well...

 Sorry, Ms  Vassar... you're staying here, until we all go..

 The woman looked  angry as she said,why can't you communicate with those in the Hold?.. The  Brood  Mothers.. or whatever is in charge there?

 Shadow  spoke  quietly and sternly,These  are not the  Brood mothers  from a Hive Ship..these are special..they Volunteered, they  were 'modifed'  and  they  WANTED..the job... We had one on Everest... she inserted  herself into EVERSEC.... she had her   egg sac removed, and could still fuction  as  a  humanoid... She, was one of these...we had an Op to take her out, and  it failed the first time around, and we had to call more teams in to  do the job... We need to wipe out everything in there...we have to assume the other   arks are doing the same thing... the fact that some of these people didn't go along, Doesn't change the  fact  that it happened, whether  volunteers, or forced.. we need to remove the  supply from the demand..and  eliminate the  end product

 Vasar looked  at Shadow,what kind of cold hearted bastard  are you..there might be...

 Shadow snarled,There is nothing... we want to 'save' from there.. if you were strapped to  one of those recliners  pumping out  eggs as you ate , whatever the  fed you.., would you want to  stay alive?  Or , worse..if you  swung over to thier side... we would not want you to survive....here is the  end of it...had  we did, what we were supposed to do? we don't even know they are there..and  when colonists started to   build, they would help feed the  Empire's  foothold here...

 The  LC is right.... The reports from around the  planet..and E-2, tell us , this is  the  'hive'.. Drop ship tropers have   cleaned out  miles of  tunnels and  found some  bases that were either destroyed  or taken over., So..the APF is getting a stronger foothold..all that is  left, is to cleanse this  mountain..

 but the artifacts and the  things we could learn...

 we can  gather  artifacts  after we kill everything. Doc Henry has samples of   bodies....right  now? destroying  any foothold they have, and  reinforcing our own, is the most important thing

  move Out, Carry on....

   Shadow COMed  Fitz.... Fitz? get your flight ready to escort the Club.... they should be ready to go in an hour or so.

 what are the rest doing?

 Mostly  hanging around  until we are ready to go and Help drop ship troopers when the   wipe out the bugs..

 Can someone else go?  I'd really like to stay

 Doc, Sakura, Robbins  and 1/3 of  our troopers and Half the Largs  are going.. Get O'Cooner o  the ship, and  Vosts is worthless unless we get her  head screwed on right..

 dammit..ok, LC..already done...

 Fitz COMed his  pilots to get ready.

 Disna  and  Puskie  gathered largs,  to heard towards The Club. Larry refused   and walked away towards   The Admiral's HQ... mean while , drop ship troopers  , scouted the  wreck in sq2uads,  marking  openings  for engineers to seal.

 Supe  had  come out of the Barracks with Hodden... do you think there are any arch-techs  or  Oil lords   in there?

Supe shruged,Don't know? don't care..Arch techs  know the  danger of thier  jobs, and a few less Oil lords is never a bad thing..